Christmas is upon us, and while for many people that means spending time at home with their families, that doesn't mean that there still isn't plenty to do if you decide to get out and about. Here's our round-up of events happening over the next week.
Abu Dhabi: Abu Dhabi Mall will be holding a Christmas bazaar until Dec 31. Lots of crafts will be available; call o2 645 4858 for details. Also, tomorrow is the last day to take your kids to meet Santa at the grotto.
Dubai: Take your little ones to a festive Teddy Bear Tea today and tomorrow at the Ritz Carlton Hotel. Enjoy a buffet and Santa story reading between 4.00pm and 5.00pm. Dh100 per person.
Favourite Things winter camp will be running until Jan 7 (today until Wednesday, Sunday to Dec 31 and Jan 4 to Jan 7). Activities include drama, cooking, face painting and puppet shows. Morning sessions (between 9.30am and 1.00pm) are available for two to three-year-olds and four to seven-year-olds. The cost for members is Dh420 for four sessions or Dh120 for one session; for non-members it's Dh520 for four sessions or Dh150 for one session. Children younger than four must be accompanied by an adult (@email:www.favouritethings.com).
Abu Dhabi: If you feel like trying something different on Christmas Day, bookings are still available at Talay, the sea-view Thai restaurant at the Le Méridien Hotel. The meal costs Dh90 for children and Dh185 for adults. A children's menu including mini pizzas and spring rolls will be available. Children's activities, including a bouncy castle and face painting, will also be on offer (02 644 6666).
Dubai: The White Christmas Eve Dinner at Ski Dubai will run today and tomorrow. The package costs Dh345 for adults and Dh245 for children. It includes snow park entry, Christmas dinner, hot chocolate, private table visits by Santa and friends, a photo with Santa and a gift from Santa. Visit @email:www.skidxb.com or call 04 323 2005 for details.
Jack and the Beanstalk at the Madinat Theatre continues its run until Jan 3. Performances take place at 3.30pm and 7.30pm, and tickets cost Dh135.
Abu Dhabi: Join carol singers as they make their way around the Shangri-La hotel tomorrow, starting in the lobby at 7.00pm.
Dubai: The Winter Festival at the Ibn Battuta Mall sees China Court turned into a winter wonderland with market stalls, winter movies, a gift-wrapping service and a live show featuring characters from the movie Ice Age. Until Jan 4.
Catch the magician James Harrington performing at the Dubai Gold Market today, tomorrow and on Christmas Day. Harrington will be performing close-up magic between 6.00pm and 10.00pm.
The five pillars of Islam
The five pillars of Islam
Company Profile
Company name: Cargoz
Date started: January 2022
Founders: Premlal Pullisserry and Lijo Antony
Based: Dubai
Number of staff: 30
Investment stage: Seed
SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
'Skin'
Dir: Guy Nattiv
Starring: Jamie Bell, Danielle McDonald, Bill Camp, Vera Farmiga
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
COMPANY PROFILE
Company: Eco Way
Started: December 2023
Founder: Ivan Kroshnyi
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Electric vehicles
Investors: Bootstrapped with undisclosed funding. Looking to raise funds from outside
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre, six-cylinder
Transmission: six-speed manual
Power: 395bhp
Torque: 420Nm
Price: from Dh321,200
On sale: now
The years Ramadan fell in May
Despacito's dominance in numbers
Released: 2017
Peak chart position: No.1 in more than 47 countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Lebanon
Views: 5.3 billion on YouTube
Sales: With 10 million downloads in the US, Despacito became the first Latin single to receive Diamond sales certification
Streams: 1.3 billion combined audio and video by the end of 2017, making it the biggest digital hit of the year.
Awards: 17, including Record of the Year at last year’s prestigious Latin Grammy Awards, as well as five Billboard Music Awards
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Revibe
Started: 2022
Founders: Hamza Iraqui and Abdessamad Ben Zakour
Based: UAE
Industry: Refurbished electronics
Funds raised so far: $10m
Investors: Flat6Labs, Resonance and various others
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-finals, second leg:
Liverpool (0) v Barcelona (3), Tuesday, 11pm UAE
Game is on BeIN Sports
UFC FIGHT NIGHT: SAUDI ARABIA RESULTS
Main card
Middleweight:
Robert Whittaker defeated Ikram Aliskerov via knockout (Round 1)
Heavyweight:
Alexander Volkov def Sergei Pavlovich via unanimous decision
Middleweight:
Kelvin Gastelum def Daniel Rodriguez via unanimous decision
Middleweight:
Shara Magomedov def Antonio Trocoli via knockout (Round 3)
Light heavyweight:
Volkan Oezdemir def Johnny Walker via knockout (Round 1)
Preliminary Card
Lightweight:
Nasrat Haqparast def Jared Gordon via split decision
Featherweight:
Felipe Lima def Muhammad Naimov via submission (Round 3)
Welterweight:
Rinat Fakhretdinov defeats Nicolas Dalby via split decision
Bantamweight:
Muin Gafurov def Kang Kyung-ho via unanimous decision
Light heavyweight:
Magomed Gadzhiyasulov def Brendson Ribeiro via majority decision
Bantamweight:
Chang Ho Lee def Xiao Long via split decision
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Almouneer
Started: 2017
Founders: Dr Noha Khater and Rania Kadry
Based: Egypt
Number of staff: 120
Investment: Bootstrapped, with support from Insead and Egyptian government, seed round of
$3.6 million led by Global Ventures
The specs
Engine: 0.8-litre four cylinder
Power: 70bhp
Torque: 66Nm
Transmission: four-speed manual
Price: $1,075 new in 1967, now valued at $40,000
On sale: Models from 1966 to 1970
Company Profile
Name: HyveGeo
Started: 2023
Founders: Abdulaziz bin Redha, Dr Samsurin Welch, Eva Morales and Dr Harjit Singh
Based: Cambridge and Dubai
Number of employees: 8
Industry: Sustainability & Environment
Funding: $200,000 plus undisclosed grant
Investors: Venture capital and government
TWISTERS
Director:+Lee+Isaac+Chung
Starring:+Glen+Powell,+Daisy+Edgar-Jones,+Anthony+Ramos
Rating:+2.5/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: SmartCrowd
Started: 2018
Founder: Siddiq Farid and Musfique Ahmed
Based: Dubai
Sector: FinTech / PropTech
Initial investment: $650,000
Current number of staff: 35
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Various institutional investors and notable angel investors (500 MENA, Shurooq, Mada, Seedstar, Tricap)
‘FSO Safer’ - a ticking bomb
The Safer has been moored off the Yemeni coast of Ras Issa since 1988.
The Houthis have been blockading UN efforts to inspect and maintain the vessel since 2015, when the war between the group and the Yemen government, backed by the Saudi-led coalition began.
Since then, a handful of people acting as a skeleton crew, have performed rudimentary maintenance work to keep the Safer intact.
The Safer is connected to a pipeline from the oil-rich city of Marib, and was once a hub for the storage and export of crude oil.
The Safer’s environmental and humanitarian impact may extend well beyond Yemen, experts believe, into the surrounding waters of Saudi Arabia, Djibouti and Eritrea, impacting marine-life and vital infrastructure like desalination plans and fishing ports.
Naga
Director: Meshal Al Jaser
Starring: Adwa Bader, Yazeed Almajyul, Khalid Bin Shaddad
Rating: 4/5
